All About Homes Residential Inspection Service

My wife and I have been looking for a home for several months now, and we have done a lot of research on home inspectors. My question has to do with the reports inspectors provide, and whether or not we want a report with pictures. Some inspectors say that the pictures are important because they show conditions found by the inspector. Other inspectors say that pictures are not important to have in reports because the written description in a report communicates more information. We want to make sure we get the most detailed information when we hire an inspector. Which format is best, and which will provide me with the most protection?

M.F., Pleasanton

You were wise to do research on choosing an inspector, and questioning what type of report is most informative. Just as there are dozens of inspection companies in the marketplace, there are also dozens of variations on how home inspectors package and present their information to buyers. Some reports are very detailed and specific, and others are vague and hard to understand. The best inspection reports are those that provide the most accurate information in a clear and concise way, allowing a buyer to fully understand its contents. After all, you will be relying on this information to base your decision on whether or not you will buy the house.

There are three basic report formats, some of which include pictures while others do not. The formats include a type written narrative report which is usually the most detailed in providing information. There is a combination of a narrative report and a checklist which relies on pre-assembled and generic written disclosures, and a checklist indicating serviceable or attention needed. This report provides a lot of text and information that may or may not apply to a particular home. And finally, there is a straight check-list report that provides only the most basic of information, usually in a format that is hard to understand.

The reason inspectors use different formats is for their own convenience and the speed in which they can complete their inspection and get the information to a client. There are many computer software programs and pre-printed forms that an inspector can buy to assist them presenting the information to a buyer, and many of these programs offer the inspector the ability to include photos with their reports. The photos tend to visually enhance these computer generated reports and checklists so the buyer perceives them as being more valuable. However, the truth of the matter is that photos are a poor substitute for accurate disclosure and a full understanding of a house’s condition.

While photo cannot take the place of seeing the information first hand, they can provide information about an item that you would not ordinarily see during an inspection such as something on the roof, or in the sub area below a house. The problem is, unless the condition in the picture is obvious or explained to a potential client, the client may not understand what the inspector was trying to disclose when taking the picture. Often times, pictures only show only a small aspect of a condition, and not the overall representation of what can be seen in person.

A good example of this is when I inspected the foundation of a house that was just purchased. After the buyers moved in, they noticed floor sloping and flexing to the subfloor in the living room. The buyers had a report done with pictures, and two of the pictures showed vertical cracks in the foundation under the living room. The checklist report identified the cracks as not serious and attributed them to settlement of the building.

What the inspector failed to mention, and the pictures failed to show was a ½” gap between the top of the foundation and the bottom of the house (10 feet away from the cracks). The foundation had settled substantially on that side, and was pulling away from the floor. This was due to an adverse drainage condition at the exterior of the foundation. None of this information was clearly communicated to the buyers. The cracks that the inspector showed in the pictures were actually caused by the stess of the foundation settling.

Unfortunately, the buyers were not told to attend the inspection. They did not have an opportunity to question the inspector about the cracking and what it actually meant. And since the cracks in the picture did not look so bad and the report did not mention that they needed to be addressed, the buyers did not pursue this matter any further.

Not attending the inspection is probably the biggest mistake a home buyer can make. Attending an inspection is a tremendous opportunity for buyer to spend at least two hours looking at the house they intend to buy with a professional who can answer any questions they might have.

The best advice that I can give you is to work with an experienced inspector that presents his findings in a detailed report, and don’t necessarily rely on photos to make your ultimate decision. To find out what kind of a report an inspector provides, ask for a sample. Most inspectors will gladly send you one for free. If you look at several different formats, you will understand how differently information can be presented, and how hard or easy a report is to comprehend.

John R. Schneider is a licensed general building contractor and an ICBO certified residential code specialist. He is president of All About Homes, a residential inspection company, and has been performing code and construction consultations since 1985. Readers may address their comments to John Schneider, 24326 Mission Blvd., Suite 7, Hayward, CA 94544, Fax number: 510-537-8666, or on the web at www.allabouthomes.com . Schneider will answer questions of general interest in the paper. He reserves the right to edit the letter for brevity and clarity. Readers are encouraged to contact a competent contractor or code consultant for specific information regarding questions they may have about their home.

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